glow is low and it's dimming (and the silence is ringing)
by titania eli
Summary: the not-so-typical soulmate au where you are born with your soulmate's name on your wrist and your heart burns warm when you share eye contact with your destined one. but remember, it's not as simple as it sounds.


Sabo was six and breaking the nose of the asshole that ripped the band off his wrist when he realized that he was different.

In a world where everyone was born with a name on their wrists, inked in black over the spidery veins and showing the path to your soulmate, Sabo has no name.

There was no one with his name on their wrist. No one was waiting for him. He would never feel his chest warmed and feel the missing piece in his heart slotted back into place.

They called people like him 'broken'.

He hid his empty wrist under a black band ever since. If anyone ever wondered, then they probably just thought him as a secretive person.

Baring your wrist and showing off your soulmate's name was uncommon, but that doesn't mean that people who does that does not exist. Most people just don't feel comfortable exposing something as vulnerable and precious as your soulmate's name to the world.

He stopped hiding his wrist after graduating high school.

It stopped mattering when he turned eighteen and realized that he was still awesome even if he doesn't have someone out there made for him.

He has graduated high school, and he's still going to conquer the world.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately, conquering the world was going to have to take a rain check when he has college tuition fees to pay.<p>

Despite the lack of work experience, Sabo easily obtained a part-time job as a barista at a coffee shop with a really ridiculous name. Who the hell would name a coffee shop The Revolutionary?

Stupid name aside, Sabo got on really well with his colleagues. Hack, his manager, was a really cool guy with an amazing work ethic. Sabo has never seen the man lose his cool even once while dealing with demanding and unreasonable customers. Although he could be a pushover when it came to Koala, another part-timer.

Koala had taken it upon herself to personally coach and teach Sabo the ways of a barista upon meeting him. It was like they connected instantly the moment they met. If Sabo was a more idealistic man, he'd have thought that she was his soulmate. But Koala was more like an older sister to him, albeit a really overbearing one at times.

The art of coffee brewing was surprisingly fun, and his colleagues were all very nice. It would be a pity to leave when school started.

Sabo was a quick learner, and he absorbed information and instructions well. By the end of the week, he was trusted to man the cashier alone while Koala went out for her break and Hack was holed up in his office.

Anyway, the customers wouldn't be arriving until lunch hour. Sabo still have time to spare and relax.

"Uh, excuse me?"

Sabo's head snapped up, instantly alert. Thank god, he was nearly dozing off.

"Hi," He put on a practised smile as he greeted the two young men standing in front of him. "What can I get you?"

"A double shot mocha iced latte with extra whip cream, for Luffy here." The older one said, a large smile stretched across his handsome, freckled face. "And an iced chocolate for me." He glanced at Sabo's hand, still gripping the marker in between his fingers as he wrote down the orders on the paper cups. "Uh, I'm Ace. I mean, usually Koala is the one here, so she knows who I am."

The blonde's lips twitched as he scrawled out A-C-E underneath the order.

"Anything else to go, Ace?" He asked.

"Turkey ham burger!" The younger man, Luffy, yelled excitedly, shoving his companion aside.

"_No_, Luffy," Ace growled, shoving him away. He glanced over momentarily to address Sabo. "Please ignore him. Just two cinnamon buns."

Sabo pretended not to hear Ace's 'and that's a ciabatta roll, not a burger, you idiot!' as he punched the order into the machine.

When he reached over to accept the cash, he noticed Ace's eyes flicking towards his wrist. The instinctive urge to pull back his hands and hide the empty wrist was strong, but he forced himself to act normal. It wasn't a habit that he could easily shake off, especially after nearly twenty years of concealing his wrist.

He wasn't lying when he said that it stopped mattering. He just hated the pity on people's faces whenever they see the unmarked skin.

"Thank you! Please take a seat and I'll bring your order to you later." He said cheerfully.

Later, Koala came back from her break just as he finished making Ace and Luffy's drinks. She was more than happy to deliver the food and drinks to the two men.

He wouldn't say that he was hiding from them, but he was able to breathe more easily after they left.

* * *

><p>"Hi!"<p>

He looked over and standing on the other side of the counter was a young, dark-haired man with huge eyes and a large grin on his face.

"…Luffy, right?" He asked, straightening up and putting his phone away.

"Yep, I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" The younger man grinned, and Sabo couldn't help but mirrored the smile. There was just something infectious about the man's perpetual excitement with life.

"What can I get for you?" He smiled.

"Um, a double shot? — mocha iced latte," Luffy scrunched up his nose as if he was trying to remember something. "Oh, and with lots of whip cream! And a dozen of your turkey ham burgers — with no veggies because _yuck_!"

_A dozen?_

"I think you mean the turkey ham ciabatta." Sabo laughed, eyes glittering with mirth.

"Eh, whatever." Luffy said, unconcerned. He dug into his pocket and dumped a wad of cash on the counter.

Sabo sighed as he counted out the notes and coins, dropping them into the cash register. He swiftly wrote down the order on the notepad and sent it to the kitchen.

"You can take a seat first." He helpfully pointed out, when he noticed that Luffy was still standing there.

"Nope," Luffy grinned. "I wanna talk to you. Hey, what's your name?"

Sabo normally has a policy where he separated work with his personal life, so he doesn't really make conversation with his customers, other than small talk.

But the bright smile and genuine interest on the younger man's face made him hesitated. For a split second, he looked around desperately, but it was a slow morning so he was yet again alone at the counter. He couldn't see a way out of this.

"…It's Sabo."

* * *

><p>The thing was, it was hard not to love Luffy. The latter dropped by almost everyday, always seeming to catch Sabo during the times when there wasn't much customers in the shop.<p>

Always, he would order the same drink. A double shot mocha iced latte with extra whipped cream. Sometimes, Sabo even added a few marshmallows and flakes of chocolate rice over the whipped cream. The satisfaction he felt when he saw Luffy's joy spreading across his childish face should feel dirtier.

The younger man has a name. Portgas D. Ace stamped horizontally across his wrist in black, cursive ink, in fact. Luffy already has a soulmate.

It wouldn't be that bad if he disliked Ace too.

The older man joined Luffy frequently, although he was more contented to watch at the side, sipping into his iced chocolate and occasionally slipping in wisecracks that brought tears of laughter to Sabo's eyes. He never seemed to look jealous or annoyed that Luffy was giving so much attention to a stranger. Between Luffy and Ace, it felt like the latter was the balance to his younger companion.

But their interactions always occurred over the counter.

It felt like he would be crossing the line if he ever joined Ace and Luffy on their side of the counter.

Watching Ace and Luffy together and marvelling at how they seemed to revolve around each other. Their interaction with each other was beautiful, and it made Sabo's teeth ached with how sweet they looked together… Although sweet was perhaps going too far. He knew full well how terrible these two could be.

Seeing how happy the pair looked, how_ perfect_ they seemed together, it brought back all the insecurity that Sabo thought he had long gotten rid of.

His unmarked skin suddenly felt like a blemish, unsightly and nauseating.

It reminded him of how his junior high school had been, the rumours of his empty wrist running rampage across the school when someone accidentally noticed the lack of name.

He was 'broken', and people avoided him in fear of it being contagious. Which was kind of ridiculous, but then again, everyone were morons in junior high so Sabo doesn't entirely blame them.

He loved Ace and Luffy, but he also kind of hated them.

He had sworn that no one would ever make him doubted himself again.

* * *

><p>To be honest, he wasn't trying to shove them away. He just wanted to limit their interactions so that it wouldn't hurt that much later. And if he just happened to be in the kitchen pretending to be busy or on his break during the periods he knew Ace and Luffy always came by, it was just a coincidence.<p>

He also tended to forget about Luffy's moments of alarming perceptiveness and Ace's bullheaded tenacity.

That's how he found himself cornered by the two men at the back of the coffee shop during his break.

"Did we do something to upset Sabo?" Luffy asked, wide-eyed and his lips tilted down in a frown that doesn't suit his cheerful face.

"How did you know I'm here?" He replied instead, clearly avoiding the question.

Ace scowled in frustration, "Koala told us you were hiding back here, now answer Luffy. Why are you avoiding us?"

"I'm _not _avoiding you!" He yelled, but felt his cheeks heated up. Was he being too obvious?

"Oh, yeah?" Ace said sarcastically, looking infuriatingly calm. Sabo wanted to punch the patronizing look off his freckled face, or kiss him — whatever. "Then explain why you're always conveniently 'busy' whenever we came into the shop?"

"Yeah, we hadn't talk _for ages_!" Luffy interjected angrily.

His jaw set, the blonde averted his gaze mulishly, every muscle in his body tensed and tight. He was ready to bolt, and Ace seemed to sense that. The anger faded from his face and he raised his hands warily.

"Sabo, we just want to know what's going on. We, um, like you—" Sabo felt his heart skipped a beat, but refused to allow himself to hope. "And you're our friend, so if we did anything to piss you off, you should tell us."

Ace gazed at him hopefully. "Please say something."

"Has this got to do with your empty wrist?" Luffy spoke up nonchalantly.

Sabo twitched, and Ace very patiently did not smack the younger man. He has to admit though, that the blonde barista was the very first person he met that existed without a soulmate waiting out there.

Sure, he knew that they existed, but he could never imagine how someone could live without a soulmate. Meeting Luffy had been a tumultuous experience in the beginning. He was a pretty hostile kid when he was younger. But he could not deny that Luffy was the best match for him, although it took quite a while for him to realize that.

That Sabo refused to hide his blank wrist, the subtle defiance to a world that rejected him because he was different… Ace was intrigued, and he grew to like the blonde.

It had worried him in the beginning. Liking someone other than your own bonded one was almost a thing unheard of, but when Luffy declared his own feelings for Sabo unashamedly…

Maybe — just maybe it was possible to love another person.

"We like you," Ace decided to speak, calmly and gently as he looked at Sabo right in the eye. "Both Luffy and I."

"That's not…" Sabo paused. "I'm not your soulmate."

He knew this. He has seen the names on both Ace and Luffy's wrists. Neither has his names, only each other's. And he, whose skin was unmarked and smooth, was clearly destined to be alone for the rest of his life.

"If you want a name, Sabo, we can always tattoo ours on your wrist." Luffy said easily, smile widening. "And I can tattoo your name below Ace!"

Sabo froze, while Ace tried to hide his smirk. Luffy always made everything sounded so easy, and that's why Ace loved him.

"We don't need a name to tell us who to love." He said patiently. "I didn't like Luffy in the first place, you know?" He noticed Sabo perked up in curiosity. "We were still kids, and I was pissed that this goofy moron had turned out to be my soulmate."

"Yeah, Ace tried to kill me a lot of times!" Luffy said loudly. He flushed and kicked the younger man in annoyance.

"What I'm trying to say here, is that the both of us grew up together and — and I didn't love him until _college_." He smiled. "And I like _you_. So does Luffy. So the question is, do you like us?"

"I…" Sabo swallowed the lump in his throat, grimacing under the expectant stares of both men. "Yes, yes — I like you both!"

His cheeks flared a bright red, and the delight that came over Luffy's face made his heart race and his body to turn hot in embarrassment.

"How about joining us for a coffee?" Ace said warmly.

Sabo's heart fluttered and he smiled, "I'll be pleased to."

Luffy and Ace have always set their own path and moved to the beat of their own song. They don't need a name to tell them that Sabo's going to be in their lives for a pretty long time.

…Hopefully forever.


End file.
